Arizona Diamondbacks

After the signing of outfielder Cody Ross, it appears Upton could once again be up for trade, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.

That means either Upton, the wunderkind who spends a lot of time on the trading block, Jason Kubel or Gerardo Parra is likely to be dealt. And since it's not too likely that it'll be Parra, who the D-Backs want to keep for his defense, Upton is now one of two prime candidates to be traded.

While the Texas Rangers have been the team most linked to Upton, their unwillingness to part with Elvis Andrus or Jurickson Profar is looking to be the major hurdle.

All along, general manager Kevin Towers has suggested he'd trade Upton if he could get his future shortstop out of the deal, and while Towers already has acquired top shortstop prospect Didi Gregorius without surrendering Upton, there's a belief Towers would still trade Upton if Texas was willing to give up one of its two fine young shortstops, the proven Elvis Andrus or the superb prospect Jurickson Profar (though there's no indication the Rangers are about to relent on either of those two).

Arizona has some decisions to make in the next six weeks. There's no way the ballclub can go into spring training with Ross, Kubel, Parra and Upton. Or, could they?

Hairston may not be the outfielder the Braves were aiming for, but he could be looked at as a one-year stopgap. With Evan Gattis still likely a year away from the majors, Hairston could be that guy at the top of the lineup for one year.

Or, the Braves could bring back Michael Bourn on a one-year contract with a mutual agreement to not tender him a contract next year.

Baltimore Orioles

Joe Saunders could return to the Baltimore Orioles in 2013 after being traded from the Diamondbacks midseason.

Roch Kubatko of masnsports.com reports that the Orioles have remained in contact with the free agent.

Executive vice president Dan Duquette remains in contact with left-hander Joe Saunders' agent. Some members of the national media keep trying to link the Orioles to Kyle Lohse, but they don't give out big contracts to free-agent pitchers and they'd rather hold onto their first-round pick.

While there are still multiple in-house candidates who can fill that No. 5 spot in the bullpen, Saunders would be the best fit.

After all, manager Buck Showalter did have enough confidence in him to start the one-game playoff last season.

Cincinnati Reds

If Scott Rolen can accept a reduced role in 2013, he likely could find himself back with the Cincinnati Reds.

In an interview with Reds' general manager Walt Jocketty posted on mlb.com, Jocketty said he would happily welcome the free-agent third baseman back.

He's been so important to our success the last few years. He's been an instrumental part of our team and the clubhouse...If he wants to play, we have to see if we can work out something to his satisfaction as well as ours.

While he doesn't say exactly how the Reds could get Rolen back, Jocketty knows what kind of leader the third baseman is. By bringing him back, he could provide that veteran leadership the Reds need.

If the Colorado Rockies are seeking a king's ransom, they're never going to improve with young talent.

Acquiring two prospects, including a good pitching prospect, isn't out of the question. But, if the Rockies continue to look for more than Fowler is worth, then they'll never get anything in return for him.

Houston Astros

The text came after (Jeff) Luhnow was asked about Jose Lopez telling reporters at a press conference in Venezuela he was closing to signing with the Astros. Lopez said he was flying to Houston on Wednesday, presumably for a physical.

While some fans were hopeful of the Astros signing Lopez, the move wouldn't make sense with the infield now set after the signing of Carlos Pena.

Miami Marlins

After trading away almost all of their best players, the Miami Marlins may have difficulty getting Giancarlo Stanton to sign long-term.

Stanton, who let it be known he wasn't happy about Jose Reyes, Emilio Bonifacio, Josh Johnson and others being traded, is thought to be just biding his time until free agency.

According to Joe Frisaro of mlb.com, the Marlins are willing to listen to offers for Stanton.

Marlins assistant general manager Dan Jennings was a guest on the "Front Office" show, with hosts Jim Bowden and Jim Duquette.

Jennings was asked if the Marlins would listen to offers for Stanton. Per company policy, the team does so on any player.

"Oh, I think that's been our [modus operandi]. I know in the 10 years I've been here, that's our M.O.," Jennings said. "We've never not listened to a deal on any player. Sometimes I chuckle when I hear people say, 'This guy's untouchable,' and 'That guy's untouchable.' You know what? They may be untouchable, until someone either overwhelms you or you get a package back that makes such a significant improvement on your club going forward. So we've always been willing to listen."

What ballclub wouldn't try to acquire Stanton after hearing this?

Unfortunately for most teams, they won't have the type of package the Marlins would be seeking.

Only teams with deep farm systems and a few top-level prospects they're willing to offer will be considered.

"I wouldn't say we're done," assistant General Manager Rob Antony said. "I wouldn't say were pushing hard. We have our feelers out there. If the situation is right, we could do something else. If not, we're O.K. too.''

Indications are that they are not going to hand out the two-year deal for $14-15 million that has become the rage this offseason (see Brandon McCarthy, Joe Blanton and Francisco Liriano). They will let Joe Saunders walk if that is the case. Same for Brett Myers and Shawn Marcum (there are health issues with Marcum too).

But if the offseason continues and the those pitchers remain unsigned, the Twins will take a harder look at them if they lower their demands. Despite having money to spend (they could open the season with a payroll in the low $80M range) they are not going to pay what they think is too much for average pitching.

The Twins are playing it smart. They're not desperate, but they're also not closing the books on any deals.

Pittsburgh Pirates

The Pittsburgh Pirates seemed to have made the most cost-effective move of the offseason by trading closer Joel Hanrahan, according to Fangraph's Eric Seidman.

Seidman believes that the Pirates could get the same production out of the new combo at the back end of the bullpen, but at a cheaper rate.

After re-signing (Jason) Grilli the Pirates had approximately $10 million being spent on their setup man and closer this season. By moving Hanrahan for (Mark) Melancon and taking a flier on Francisco Liriano, they may well be able to replicate the Hanrahan-Grilli tandem’s production at 30% of the cost while improving the rotation.

Any way you look at it, the Pirates got the good end of the deal as they also have the prospects to help them in the future.

St. Louis Cardinals

Adam Wainwright is searching for a big payday after this offseason, but the St. Louis Cardinals hope it doesn't get that far.

According to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Wainwright's value is only escalating and the Cardinals would be wise to go ahead and lock him up.

Before the winter meetings a club official said the two sides had not held “substantive” talks yet this offseason.

That spring-oriented timetable follows the one the Cardinals had for Yadier Molina this past year and Wainwright previously. The Cardinals agreed to a five-year, $75-million extension with Molina in March that kept him from becoming a free agent this winter. Back in March 2008, Wainwright and the Cardinals negotiated an extension that became his current six-year, $36-million deal.

The Cardinals made a mistake in not negotiating with Albert Pujols as much as possible before the start of the final year of his contract.

Tampa Bay Rays

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After a dominant bullpen in 2012, the Tampa Bay Rays expect the same in 2013.

However, there are still some moves to be made according to Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times.

(Rays executive VP Andrew) Friedman said they're still looking for one or two relievers, and he has a track record of acquiring quality arms for the bullpen, such as RHP Dan Wheeler in 2007, Troy Percival in 2008, Rafael Soriano and Joaquin Benoit in 2010 and Peralta and RHP Juan Cruz in 2011. If the Rays stay in-house, RHP Brandon Gomes could slide in...

Regardless, the Rays will make some kind of move to solidify the bullpen.

Toronto Blue Jays

Garza, who hasn't had the greatest success in Chicago, is still an interesting candidate considering he's a power arm.

The two teams that have always had the most interest in Garza have been Texas and Toronto. Last July those were the two that were most interested before his injury. My sources and instincts would still be very interested in Garza if we was healthy in spring training. They could go as far as having private workouts for teams during the spring.

Toronto has already won the offseason with all the moves they've made.

However, if the Blue Jays acquire Garza, they immediately become the favorites to win it all.

Washington Nationals

According to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post, LaRoche wants to re-sign with the Nationals, but is keeping his options open.

We’re talking to a few other teams,” LaRoche said Friday evening in a voicemail. “Got to keep things open in case Washington doesn’t work out. I’m still hopeful that it will, but as you know it takes two sides cooperating to make that happen. I’m doing everything I can.

After hitting 33 home runs and 100 RBI, it's strange that the Nationals are balking at a third year.

It's not like he's asking for a five- or six-year deal.

If the Nationals continue to mess around, LaRoche will end up somewhere else next season and they'll be left with Michael Morse to try to achieve LaRoche's production.